This Year
by immaawkwardturtle
Summary: [Human AU- UsUk, PruCan, (later FrUk just to piss ya off) and a bunch of other pairings. Rated M for "schtuff" in later chapters.] Alfred is surprised when he finds a family moving in permanently next door. Arthur and his family, that is. As their friendship blossoms, Alfred finds himself falling for this mysterious boy. Which is an issue. Alfred isn't gay...


**AN:** Hey, you guys! I'm writing again. Trust me, this story is not going to be as shitty as my last one. That one was really bad... It had no plot. BUT GUESS WHAT! THIS ONE DOES~ This one's also going to be much longer than the last. But as I'm writing this, I also have stupid school to juggle, so I'm going to attempt to make regular updates, which I'll reveal next chapter. So- enough of my babbling... Have a cute 16 year old Alfred in awe of Arthur! Enjoy~

**Chapter 1:**

I went out to the backyard with my journal and a glass of homemade lemonade my mom had just made. I sat in the swing hanging from the old oak tree. I could still feel the heat of the August sun beating down on my extended legs where the shade didn't reach. I glanced over the fence to the house next door. Parked out front was a moving truck. I honestly don't remember the last time someone lived there. People have been moving in and out of that house for years. I'm 16 now, but something in my gut tells me with the amount of furniture in that truck that they are here to stay. I set my drink down next to me and took out the pen I kept in the bind of the spiral journal, marking down this important date.

_Thursday, August 22nd, 2006_

_Today, someone is moving in next door. Maybe these people are here to stay…_

I glanced back up. A middle-aged man and a younger guy walked out to the truck to grab a cream colored couch. The boy looked about my age. All I could really make out was his ash blonde hair and his resplendent, pale skin. He turned to take a side of the couch with who I assume to be his father and I could make out the simple outline of his face.

… _He has blonde hair and a distinct jawline. I'll have to acquaint myself sooner or later. This boy looks around my age, if not older. Perhaps we will go to Spring Lake together. I'll keep my eyes peeled. _

_Till next time, Alfred F. Jones_

I closed my journal and put the pen back into the bind. I put down my journal and traded it for my lemonade. I took a sip and sighed. School would start up another year at Spring Lake High and as a rising sophomore; there wasn't much to get excited about. I still had two more years until graduating and there was nothing I could do about that. At least I had one thing to look forward to. Reuniting with my friends was definitely an incentive for getting my ass out of bed on those days I dreaded the most, the first day of school. With that day soon approaching, my brother Matthew and I have a lot to do. That includes supply shopping and clothes shopping. That's never too hard in Spring Lake, Connecticut.

All of that aside, I was planning on making this one of the best years ever. No matter how much I hated school, I'm sure I could make the best out of it. Come on, I'm Alfred Jones, the most popular boy in my grade! I played soccer and football last year and was one of the best players. Not to toot my own horn or anything like that. Not at all.

I drank the rest of my lemonade, grabbed my journal and made my way back inside. Coming in through the kitchen, I dropped my glass in the sink and rinsed it out, putting it in the dishwasher. I headed upstairs with my journal and made my way to my room, the room at the end of the hall. The one with a "Keep Out" sign on the front. Honestly, I only had that sign so my mom and dad could tell the difference between me and Matthew's room. I opened the door and shut it behind me.

I walked over to my desk right by the window facing the neighbors' house (and the neighbors' window as well). I opened the desk drawer and put my journal inside it. That's where I hid it when I was at home. I'd be devastated if anyone went through it. That journal means everything to me. I have so many valuable moments in my life in there, and sometimes I look back through the past pages and it literally makes my eyes water to see that much change. I've had the journal since I was 10. But I didn't really use it until I was 14. That year, I was convinced I was in hell, but that's a different story for a different time.

I pulled my laptop out of the charger and dragged it with me on the bed. I plopped down with a groan and opened up Tumblr on the web. I had already checked my feed about 7 times today, so there was nothing new posted. I sighed and shut the computer, setting it off to the side of my bed. I rolled over onto my back and stared at the ceiling where posters of constellations hung in harmony, making my ceiling look like it was really the night sky. The only person who knew about my weakness for the stars was my best friend of 4 years, Francis Bonnefoy. He moved here from France back in 2002 and we had all the same classes in middle school. We instantly became friends, and have been ever since then. Him and his family were hilarious and have invited me over for dinner on countless occasions. Which reminds me, I should call him and tell him about the new neighbor! I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and pulled up his number, hitting the call button. His little icon picture appeared to let me know it was he I was calling. The pic was from a year ago at the soccer championship game. It was of me and him, his arm around my shoulders and we wore the biggest smiles. I pressed the phone against my ear, only to hear the ringing come to an abrupt stop.

"Állo?" said the thick French accent on the other line.

"Hey, bro. Guess what?"

"What?"

"I got a new neighbor," I replied, peeking out my window from my bed to find the boy sitting out in the lawn with some sort of book or something…

"What?! Zhat's fantastic! Who iz she? What iz her name?"

"Um…he. It's a he, and I haven't talked to him yet. The truck's been there since early this morning, so they like, just moved in."

"Ohhh~ So are you going to introduce yourself, mon ami?"

"I dunno. He seems pretty busy at the moment…"

"Come on, Alfred! Maybe he iz our age and will be accompanying us to school in a couple weeks!"

"Ehh…" I hesitated. What if he isn't our age. Wouldn't it be awkward?

"Oh, _just do it!_"

"Fine, fine. I'll do it. Alright?"

"Hon hon hon! Tell me how it goes," he said, followed by a click and a long beep.

I hung up and put my phone back in my pocket. I lifted myself from the bed and began to pace my room. _I need to stop thinking of the what-ifs. _Hey, maybe if I bring Mattie with me, it won't be as bad!

_Wait._

_Am I really getting this nervous over some guy I don't even know? _

_I must be going insane…_

_I'm confident, and outgoing. I can handle anything in my way!_

As soon as my confidence lifted, I opened my bedroom door and knocked on Matthew's, which was two doors down.

"Come in!" the faint voice exclaimed. I walked in and grabbed Matt's arm.

"Your comin' with me, bro."

"Wha- Where?!"

"Next door. Let's go meet the neighbors!"

He wasn't convinced, "Are you sure that's it?"

"Duh! Now come on," I said with a tug of his arm. We headed down the stairs and out the door walking casually next door. The guy must've noticed us because he closed whatever book was in his hands and stared at us. We walked closer and the boy stood up.

"Can I help you?"

… _His voice. Oh my God, his_ _voice_…

"I- Uh- Heh, um…"

My brother took over, "Hi, I guess we are neighbors now, eh? My name's Matthew and this is my step-brother, Alfred."

"It's a pleasure," he said, with that wonderful, British sound in is words. It was so resonant and serene. He held his hand out to shake my brother's and then mine.

"Nice to meet-cha!" I replied and our hands met.

He let out a small laugh, "I'm Arthur," he smiled shyly.

"Arthur…Has a nice ring to it! Don't you think, Mattie?"

"Huh? O-Oh, yeah, I guess…"

I heard someone call his name. I looked up at the front door of his house. Someone with red hair and the same green eyes was in the doorway, motioning for Arthur to go inside.

"Damn, I have to go. I guess I'll see you around sometime?"

"Yeah," I sighed a laugh, "Bye!"

"Farewell."

Matthew and I exchanged a look as we left the yard, going back to our house. I pushed the glasses up on the bridge of my nose and laughed. "I can't believe he's British, Mattie!"

Matthew nodded, "It's not really unlikely, but I wasn't expecting it either."

We reached the front door and were welcomed inside with the smell of hamburgers and hotdogs fresh from the grill.

"Mmm! Smells good, Dad!" I called out as Matt's mom set the table.

"I agree!" said Matthew shortly after.

We sat down at the table as Dad served the burgers and hotdogs. I loved his hamburgers the best. They always were made so perfectly and tasted like heaven in a bun. I grabbed the ketchup and the mustard and poured a little bit of both onto my burger and took a bite. It was juicy and messy, just the way I like it. We remained silent until my step-mom brought up conversation.

"So, it seems like we have people moving in next door finally. How about that, guys?" she said, voice calm.

"Mhm," I answered with a full mouth. I swallowed and continued, "Me and Mattie went to say 'hey' to the guy sitting out in the yard. We introduced ourselves and everything."

"Well that's good! Maybe we should invite them over for a little welcome-to-the-neighborhood party on Saturday. How's that sound?"

I nearly choked on my hamburger, "H-Huh?! But we don't even know these people! They could be murders out to kill our family and-"

Mattie interrupted, "Calm down, Al. We met Arthur. He seems nice and _not _psychopathic."

"Well since its 2 against one, I'm going to have to join the bandwagon. Sorry, Al," my father added, joining the conversation.

I took a deep breath to try to cool down the heat rushing to my face. Now that I think about it, why was I getting so worked up in the first place? This had happened with all the previous neighbors. So what made this family so different? Maybe it was the fact that they were British. Or maybe the fact that Arthur gave me a vibe that sent chills from my spine to my toes (in a good way). I pushed my thoughts away with a reassuring nod of my head.

"Nah, it's cool. I'm interested in meeting the rest of Arthur's family anyways. But if they are coming over, does that mean I have to clean my room?"

"Yes. The house needs to be spotless to give off a good impression, Alfred," retorted my step-mother.

"Ugh!" I groaned. I hated cleaning. Even though my room wasn't that messy, I still hated it. I mean, you could still see the floor. That counts for something right?

The rest of dinner went okay. Once I finished my food, I got up from the table and headed up to my room to start cleaning. Okay. It was more like shoving dirty clothes in my hamper and clean, folded ones on my closet floor. I was too lazy to sort them out. My room hadn't been this clean in like… a year. It took me a while. It was already dark out. I walked over to my window and opened it up. I loved that feeling of the outside air circulating my room. Taking in a deep breath, I turned on my T.V. and Xbox. A good round of Black Ops II would be great to relieve this tense feeling I had all day.

I signed in and saw that Gilbert and Antonio were online. I put my headset on and invited them to a party.

"Yooo! Awesome Al," called out Gil. ", up for a game of C.O.D?"

"You know it!"

"Hola, Al!" added Toni.

"Hey, broseph! You playin' too?"

"Si."

"Let's do this!" In my mind, I'd expect a whole musical slow-motioned montage of me putting in my game and turning it on (like a boss), but of course that didn't really happen. I inserted the disc and hit play. We played for like, 3 hours, kicking the other team's ass on team death-match. This is just what I needed. The perfect distraction away from _him._

Gilbert shouted, interrupting my thoughts, "Hey, the awesome me has to go catch some awesome Z's. I'm fucking exhausted. I'll talk to y'all later. Bye!"

"Ah, I think I'm with you on that, mi amigo. Bye."

And like that I was alone again. I turned off the console and set my controller next to it. I plopped onto my blue bean-bag chair. I thought about asking Matthew to play Left 4 Dead with me, but I could hear him talking next door, on the phone with someone. I couldn't catch a name as I unintentionally eavesdropped.

"…This is stupid," I heard Matt's faint voice through the wall say, "Why do we have to keep this secretive? Do I embarrass you?"

My eyes widened. Matt…was in a relationship? Good for him! But- wait, secretive? Shit. Okay. Eavesdropping over. I stood up and grabbed my IPod and journal from my desk, putting in my headphones and turning up my music. I opened up my journal to today's entry and began to write some more.

_Arthur's his name. It suits him… so… strangely enchanting… mesmerizing. His eyes… They were this iridescent green and don't even get me started on his fucking accent… There's something special about him. I'm determined to find out what it is…_

-Alfred

I closed the book with a big yawn. I pulled out my headphones and turned off the music. Glancing at the clock, I realized it was already midnight. I walked over into my closet, tearing of my shirt and unbuckling my belt. I tossed the shirt in with the dirty clothes. My pants soon followed and I grabbed an old white shirt with red short sleeves, the same red as my boxer shorts I was wearing. I turned off the light in my closet and closed the door, walking over to turn off my main light and slowly making my way to the bed. I removed my glasses and set them on the table beside me, crawling into bed, snuggling my pillow. Closing my eyes, I fell asleep.

The next day went by quickly. Friday was the day during the summer where we'd all go to the community pool to cool off in the heat. I just wasn't up for it. They went without me anyways, and apparently some junior girl's top came undone as she dove into the pool. I regret not going, but it's not like I've never seen boobies before. I mean, they were everywhere on the internet. But then again, Photoshop is a powerful thing.

I managed to hide away in my room all day. I had slept in until 2:30 anyways. Sleeping is the thing I'll miss even more than the pool once school comes around again. I sat at my desk with an open window that pushed humid air into the room. My laptop was already on so I figured I'd goof off all day on YouTube. I glanced out my window, straight across to where apparently Arthur's bedroom was because there he stood. He removed his shirt and wiped his forehead, walking somewhere out of my vision. My cheeks darkened in color. So that's his room, huh? I wished to remove that sight from my head, but it stuck in my head like glue. He wasn't buff in the slightest, but his skin was incandescent and I could see sweat glistening on his lower back. I shifted my gaze back to my laptop and shut it off. Removing myself from my room, I went to the kitchen to pour me a bowl of cereal. Once I was done, I locked myself away in my room again.

Matt knocked at my door, "Hey, I'm going walking to town, do you want to tag along?"

"Sure, let me just get dressed real quick." I went into my closet, grabbed a T-shirt and jeans and put them on. I opened up my door to greet my brother, "Alright, let's go." I grabbed my wallet on the way out of the room.

We walked out the house and headed left towards the town.

"So Al, I saw the way you looked at Arthur… I didn't know you were like that," Matthew said through the awkward air.

My stomach dropped inside of me and my body grew hot. "What? What are you talking about, bro? Pshhh, I've had plenty of girlfriends before, unlike you," I sneered, "I'm definitely not like that." My voice grew shaky, "Are _you_?"

"W-What?"

"You heard me, Matt. Do you roll that way? The _gay _way?" I teased.

"Screw you, Alfred…" he huffed.

"Oh, so you _are_!" He punched me in the stomach and I stumbled backwards.

"Just shut up, Al! So? What if I am? What difference does it make? Let's not turn this on me. I'm the one who asked you first. So stop being such a prick."

"So you are…?"

"NO, ALFRED. GOD!"

"Well, someone's being defensive."

"Can we stop talking about this? I'm not gay, okay?"

"Fine, whatever. So I like… overheard you on the phone last night…"

"Dammit, Al. Can't I have any privacy?"

"Sorry! I mean your room is right next to mine."

"Okay… So… how much did you hear…?"

"That you have to keep your relationship a secret? So Matt," I nudged him, "Who's the lucky lady?"

His face altered color, "T-That's none of your business. Can we just stop talking about this, please?"

"Ugh! Fine, okay? Fine." We reached the town and went to pick up groceries from the list Matt's mom gave him.

Afterwards, we went home and dropped off the groceries in the kitchen. Matt followed me into my room and we played Left 4 Dead for a while until dinner was done. The rest of the night, Matt and I watched scary movies in his room. We passed out around 1 in the morning. That night I dreamt of how dinner would go tomorrow, and of Arthur. His warm smile and how his eyes twinkled in the light… God, Arthur. I don't even know ya, but I'm determined to figure you out. I will be your friend, Arthur.


End file.
